


Sidelines

by EbbaTriesToWrite



Series: Stray Kids: Superhero Adventures [1]
Category: Stray Kids (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Superheroes/Superpowers, Blood and Injury, Not too graphic tho, Yang Jeongin | I.N-centric
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-29
Updated: 2019-03-29
Packaged: 2019-12-26 08:50:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,490
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18279806
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EbbaTriesToWrite/pseuds/EbbaTriesToWrite
Summary: Jeongin has finally gotten to join the Strays, a group of superheroes that are rather new to the scene, but nonetheless one of the most known and powerful teams in Seoul. It's like a dream come true.The only issue though, is that he hasn't been allowed to join them in battle. He's been stuck on the sidelines with Jisung and he's growing seriously frustrated.





	Sidelines

Jeongin had been in the academy for three years when his dream finally came true. He’d gotten to join a team of superheroes, and not just any team either, he’d gotten to join the Strays. They were rather new to the scene, but nonetheless one of the most known and powerful teams in Seoul. 

Ever since superpowered humans started increasing in numbers just over three decades ago, crime became a much bigger problem. Crime has existed ever since laws were created but with superpowers in the mix the world has become a much more dangerous place for everyone. But just as there have always been those willing to uphold the law there were those with superpowers willing to put their lives on the line to bring the ones who abuse their powers down. 

Jeongin himself had been inspired not only by seeing powerful teams like Got7 and Monsta X fight evil as he grew up, but he was also motivated by the devastation he’d seen the criminals cause. He still remembers the day he came home to see his mother and little brother stood outside their house, or rather what remained of it, after a gang of elementals had burned it down because his father had refused to pay them for their “protection”. Luckily, Yugyeom, a member of Got7 had been there to get his family out with his superspeed before they burned alive. 

His mother had been scared when Jeongin had said he wanted to enroll at the academy, she didn’t want him to be in danger but had given up eventually when she realised how serious he was. He thinks she’s a bit reassured that his power is teleportation, it means he has the ability to get out of the way easier than say, if he had an element as a power. 

The Strays had welcomed him with open arms and he had been with them for almost a month so far but they hadn’t had a mission in that time, focusing instead on bonding and training as a team. So when they got the alert of an attack at the docks Jeongin had been excited, it had finally been time to get some action.

But here he was, on the sidelines with Jisung, who was tending to the injured bystanders as Jeongin watched the others fight the crew who were trying to steal what had been shipped in. He knows the others are much more experienced than him and Woojin had told him as much on the way there, he’d said it would be best if he saw them in action a few times before joining in the fight. Besides, Jisung needed someone to watch his back while he helped the bystanders, Chan had added much to Jeongin’s dismay but he had relented.  


Jisung seemed to have everything under control as he directed the civilians away from the fight and healed the few ones who were injured. Jeongin was frustrated as he watched Woojin throw a man twice his size into a wall, effectively knocking him out. Minho was nowhere to be seen but Jeongin saw people fall over from invisible punches and he knew he was doing his job. Jeongin wished he had one as well, watching Jisung’s back didn’t really feel like a job. The crew was busy fighting the Strays, so why would they be attacking the healer? Jeongin knew the answer, they wouldn’t, Chan had only said he needed backup to get him to stay out of the fight.

“Jeongin!” Jisung called and Jeongin turned to see him crouched over a crumpled form of a man and he promptly teleported over to him, “Can you grab him and get him over to the evac site?” Jeongin nodded and crouched over the man, frowning slightly as he noticed the side of his head caked with blood, “Tell the paramedics he got caught in an explosion and hit his head. I stabilized him but he still needs to get to the hospital soon.” Jisung sounded a bit out of breath but Jeongin didn’t comment and did as told.

He quickly teleported back, feeling slightly weak from having teleported with another person. He made sure Jisung didn’t need any help before he turned his attention back to the fight. He watched in amazement as Changbin threw fireballs around to steer the fight towards the others, effectively minimizing the amount of damage the crew could cause while Felix quickly put out the fires by pulling water from the sea and froze the ground underneath a few of the criminals trying to get away making them slip and fall. Hyunjin was zipping around, collecting the downed crew members and tying them up as Seungmin placed a forcefield around them, hindering them from escaping.

Chan was a bit further away from the others, engaged in a fight with the man Jeongin recognized as the leader. He had telekinesis just like Chan but Chan was obviously more powerful, taking control of the crates and debrie the other leader was hurling towards him and sending it back with controlled force. The leader of the crew was clearly loosing and seemed to realise it because he raised his hands in surrender and got on his knees. Chan pulled out a pair of power suppressant cuffs and placed them on his wrists. 

After the authorities took the crew away and took statements from everyone present they piled into their van to went home. They were all exhausted but pleased with a job well done and Jeongin couldn’t help but be pulled into their happy atmosphere as they ate take out in the living room. As they settled down Chan started talking about what they should do better and Jeongin was surprised by the amount of mistakes they all brought up. He hadn’t realised that their awareness of Minho and Hyungjin’s actions was lacking but Woojin pulled up footage of the fight and showed them where Felix had nearly caused Hyungjin to slip on his ice and where Changbin had nearly hurled a fireball straight at Minho. 

After they were done with the briefing they all scattered but Jeongin waited a bit so he’d have the time to talk to Chan. He wanted to know when he’d be allowed to join in the battle because he had felt completely useless only watching them fight. He watched as Chan stopped Jisung from leaving, placing his hands on his shoulders, making the younger man look at him.

“You okay?” he heard Chan ask and Jisung nodded.

“Fine.” he said softly as if he didn’t want anyone to hear, “There weren’t that many injured civilians and most of them only had minor injuries.” Chan looked like he was about to speak up but Jisung pressed on, “Don’t worry. I let the paramedics take care of most of them.”

“Okay.” Chan sounded relieved and let go of Jisung and the younger turned and left.

Jeongin hesitated slightly when he heard a tired sigh escape the leader and figured their conversation could wait for another time. Chan turned to him and looked at him expectantly but Jeongin plastered a smile on his face and just said goodnight. The way Chan’s shoulders had slumped in relief made him feel like he’d made the right decision, the leader needed his rest.

* * *

Jeongin tried to talk to Chan several times in the following weeks but was brushed off each time, either the leader was busy or they were called to a new mission where Jeongin was once again put on the sidelines. He was getting frustrated. He’d been with the Strays for nearly two months and still hadn’t had the chance to show that he could help. Seungmin had noticed his frustration and told him he hadn’t been allowed to join them in battle for two and a half months and Jeongin knew he meant for his words to be comforting but it only made him more mad. Would he have to wait another four weeks before he was allowed to fight? 

They were gathered in the waiting room of the hospital. The news reported that the mission had been a success but it felt nothing like it. Seungmin was nursing a pretty nasty concussion and Woojin was being treated for a punctured lung. They’d been fighting a group of rebellious teenagers who were playing around with their powers in the more run down parts of town and when they came to stop them, and well, let’s just say they didn’t appreciate someone interrupting their fun.

One of the teenagers had invincibility as his power and had snuck up behind Seungmin as he was trying to keep a building from collapsing with his forcefields and hit him on the back of his head. Jeongin had been distracted by Jisung ordering him to get him another first aid kit and only heard Seungmin’s yelp of pain before he turned to see him crumpled on the ground. Fortunately Hyunjin had managed to get the ones trapped in the building out before it collapsed but the resounding force of it collapsing caused Woojin to trip. The boy who was previously being restrained by his strong arms got the upper hand and landed strong hits on his chest before Minho managed to knock him out.

Jeongin wasn’t entirely sure what happened after, it happened too fast. But they managed to get suppressor cuffs on the teens and the police took them away. Jisung and Chan went with Seungmin and Woojin in the ambulances and the rest of them joined them at the hospital once they were done with damage control at the scene. Chan had met them in the waiting room and told them about Woojin and Seungmin’s conditions. Jisung was nowhere to be seen and Jeongin assumed the healer was helping the doctors treat their downed teammates.

It was two days later that Seungmin and Woojin got to come home, Jisung didn’t come home until the day after that and even if Jeongin was curious, the dark circles under the healers eyes kept him from asking where he’d been. They didn’t go on missions for another week after and Jeongin had asked once again if he could join them in battle, this time at dinner with everyone there. Chan said no, as expected, but Jeongin was still angry. What was the point of being on the team if he wasn’t allowed to do anything? 

He stormed off as soon as he finished his meal and found himself on the balcony, overlooking the city that looked far more peaceful than it actually was. He tried to calm himself but his mind kept showing him the image of Seungmin’s crumpled form and Woojin gasping for breath as blood bubbled up his throat. He heard the sliding doors open and looked up to see Jisung there. The older man sat down beside him on the bench they had out there and silently handed Jeongin a folded up blanket. Jeongin didn’t unfold it. 

“Look, I know it sucks being stuck on the sidelines but you’re still helping even if you’re not in the fight.” Jisung said eventually and patted his shoulder in what Jeongin suspected was supposed to be comforting but it only served to anger him more.

“How would you know?” he snapped and stood up, “Your powers are meant to be on the sidelines. There’s nothing you can do in battle but I can actually help.”

Jeongin felt slightly guilty when he saw the stunned look on Jisung’s face but he didn’t apologize. Apologies mean that you didn’t mean what you said and even if Jeongin’s words were harsh, they rang true. Jisung’s role was to be a healer while Jeongin had trained for years to fight. He didn’t think there was anything wrong with working on the sidelines, it just wasn’t where Jeongin was supposed to be.

* * *

Finally. It took another two weeks but finally Jeongin was allowed to join the others in battle. An elemental with fire powers had escaped prison and was causing trouble in the city center. He had robbed a bank but when the police came to stop him his powers went berserk and he set everything on fire, causing cars to blow up and building to collapse. Jeongin and Minho were tasked with distracting the man while Felix attempted to put out the fires and Seungmin was containing the explosions with his forcefields. Woojin and Chan were helping civilians to safety while Hyunjin was speeding around, getting to the civilians trapped in the buildings. Changbin was watching Jisung’s back as he treated the injured civilians.  
They were working well together and everything was going perfectly. Jeongin could see paramedics and police officers setting up an evac area away from the fighting. Over the comms Chan was telling them that every civilian was out of danger and they all worked together to subdue the elemental. It should have been easy but it was as if the man only got stronger as they fought him and Woojin voiced his suspicion that it was because his powers had been contained during his time in prison they were now more powerful than before. 

Jeongin only just avoided getting burnt to a crisp from the man throwing a fireball at him by teleporting away. He saw Felix dousing the man in water and it looked like it was working until the man threw flames at the car behind him and it blew up, causing both him and Hyunjin to get knocked down from the explosion. Jeongin knew he’d never forget the screams the men let out as the fire licked at their skin. Changbin rushed over and absorbed the flames, hurling it back at the criminal and the man hadn’t expected it and was knocked down. Chan grabbed slobs of concrete and placed them on top of the man, restraining him and Woojin placed a suppressor collar around the man’s neck. 

It seemed like the fight was finally over as the last of the flames were put out and as Jisung healed up the burns covering Hyunjin’s and Felix’s skin. But of course Jeongin’s first mission wouldn’t be so simple because suddenly a group of men showed up in vans and a new fight broke out. Jeongin recognized the tattoos on the men’s necks and realised that they were members of the criminal’s crew. Felix and Hyunjin joined them in the fight despite the redness covering their skin from where the burns had been. 

It happened quickly. The fight had been going in their favor and there were only two more men up standing from the crew but one of them managed to get a lucky hit on Felix and he lay sprawled on the ground, blood dripping from a cut on his forehead, he seemed dazed but was fortunately conscious. Hyunjin had immediately rushed over to get him to safety but that left Changbin open and he’d been hit by a flying piece of concrete, trapping him under it and for a second Jeongin was sure he was dead but then he saw the older man gasp for breath and he teleported over. Jisung soon reached his side and with the help of Woojin they managed to get the concrete off of him and Jisung placed his hands on Changbin’s heaving chest to heal him.

Behind them Jeongin heard the fight die down and heard someone call out that they’d all been restrained. Chan kneeled beside them but Jeongin only focused on talking to Changbin to try and get him to wake up, but to no success. There was blood dripping from the corner of the elemental’s mouth and Jeongin recalls from his first aid class that it probably means he has internal bleeding and he cringes at the prospect.

“Jisung stop!” Chan suddenly yells and Jeongin’s head snaps up in shock to see him look almost terrified and when he follows his gaze he sees Jisung with sweat beading down his face and blood dripping from his nose. 

“Not yet.” Jisung gasps out, “Just a little more. I need to stabilize him.”

“No! Jisung let Jeongin take him back to evac.” Chan insists and tries to pry Jisung’s hands off of Changbin’s chest. 

“He won’t make it,” Jisung practically growls but it sounds pathetic with how weak his voice is, “just a little more then he’ll be okay to-” he gets cut off by his own coughing and blood drips from his mouth.

“Jisung! Stop!” Chan yells and Jisung lets go and Jeongin thinks it’s because he’s actually listening to his leader’s orders but then his eyes roll back and he collapses to his side from his crouched position.

Chan rushes around Changbin - who finally opens his eyes blarily - to get to Jisung and reaches to feel for a pulse on the healers neck. 

“Can you teleport both of them?” Chan asks Jeongin and he nods despite not knowing if he actually can.

He grabs hold of both the weak figures’ shoulders and focuses on the image of the evac site just 500 m away. He closes his eyes and when he opens them he’s only a few meters away from the site and to his relief the medics there immediately notice them and come rushing over. He feels his body grow weak as the medics take control of the situation and lets himself pass out, it’s not as if he’d be able to stop it anyways.

* * *

Jeongin comes to with a groan and blinks his eyes open only to be met by a blindingly bright room. He can hear beeps and when he finally adjusts to the light he can see it’s coming from a heart monitor next to the bed he’s on. He feels a hand on his and turns his head to see a dark mop of hair resting on the bed by his legs, he squeezes the hand in hopes of waking the man and he immediately jerks up.

“You’re awake!” Seungmin gasps and throws himself on top of Jeongin before getting off at the groan of pain he lets out.

“What hap-” he cuts himself off when his memories come back to him and he looks around the room to see if any of the others are there, they’re not. “How are Changbin and Jisung?” 

“Changbin got discharged last night, Jisung managed to heal the worst of his injuries so he only has a few fractured ribs but they can heal on their own.” Seungmin says with a small smile but it slips off his face as it continues, “Jisung is a bit worse off though. He healed a lot of people and it took a toll on him.”

“What exactly happened to him?” Jeongin asks after the information has sunk in. 

“Everyone’s powers have their limits. Jisung can only take on so much pain before it manifests as his own injuries.” Seungmin sighs and runs a hand through his hair.

“That’s never happened before though.” Jeongin says but it sounds more like a question.

“Not when you’ve been on the team, no.” Seungmin agrees, “It’s happened before you joined a couple times but we usually make sure that he doesn’t have to use his powers as much as he did yesterday. He would have been fine if those other crew members didn’t show up.”

“But he’ll be okay though, right?” Jeongin asks and sits up a bit on the bed and Seungmin reaches over to press a button to raise the bed up for him.

“Yeah, it’ll probably take him a few weeks but then he’ll be able to come home.” Seungmin smiles reassuringly at him before he grabs his hand, “Now tell me, how are you feeling?”

“Fine, a bit tired but that’s expected I guess.” Jeongin smiles sheepishly, “I’ve never been able to teleport that far with two people with me.”

Seungmin nods and after a beat of silence he speaks up again, “You saved him, you know. If you hadn’t been there to get Jisung to the medics he’d probably be dead right now.” Jeongin frowns at that, he feels like Seungmin is trying to tell him something and the older seems to sense his confusion because he continues, “If you had been in the fight with the rest of us, you wouldn’t have been able to help Changbin and Jisung.”

Oh. If he hadn’t been on the sidelines, - that he’d been complaining about being on since he joined the team - Jisung would be dead and maybe Changbin would have been hurt worse if he hadn’t gotten medical attention as quickly as he had with the help of Jeongin’s powers. 

“Right.” Jeongin breathes out with his realisation and Seungmin looks way too smug for his own good and Jeongin almost wants to slap that look off his face but he feels himself grow tired again and rests back on the bed, letting sleep take him.

**Author's Note:**

> So I'm thinking I'm going to make this au a series so if you have any ideas, suggestions or prompts, feel free to send those in to my tumblr and I might write it and add it to the series xoxo
> 
> Tumblr: kimseokjinismybabe.tumblr.com
> 
> Also please let me know what you think! xoxo


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